ABSTRACT
The Aristotelian logical works are referred to collectively using the Greek term ‘Organon’. This is a reflection of the idea that logic is a tool or instrument of, though not necessarily a proper part of, philosophy. In the traditional ordering of these works the Categories comes first. It deals, among other things, with the simple terms (subjects and predicates) that when combined go together to form simple statements, and it characterizes primary substances as the ultimate subjects for predication. It also contains a treatment of ten categories, with particular emphasis on the four categories of substance, quantity, relation and quality. The De Interpretatione, which is placed second, discusses the statements that result from combining nouns and verbs, and includes a treatment of various modal relations between statements. The main topic of the two Analytics is demonstration (epideixis), the type of valid deductive argument, or syllogism, (sullogismos) involved in scientific knowledge (epistêmê). The Prior Analytics, which contains a formal theory of syllogistic reasoning, shows how statements combine to form arguments, and in the Posterior Analytics demonstrations are analyzed as explanatory syllogisms from first principles. This work combines the notion of syllogistic inference with an account of the nature of scientific first principles in its analysis of the structure of science. The Topics is chiefly concerned with dialectical debate, and the work On Sophistical Refutations contains a treatment of various kinds of fallacies in dialectical argument. At the conclusion of this work Aristotle indicates that unlike his other inquiries, such as his treatment of rhetoric, that build upon the results of his predecessors, prior to his own efforts there simply was no general inquiry concerning syllogistic reasoning. The Rhetoric, not itself included in the Organon, is
concerned with the use of rhetorical argumentation for the purpose of persuading an audience.
